Selena walked along with Marko and Wolong, light rain falling, as always. The water slicked the winding cobble street beneath her leather boots, but the Captain of the Night Hunters maintained a steady step, familiar with these streets. The temperature was depressingly chilly, but the woman's clothing, was made to provide immunity from the damp chill and rain. She walked down to the waterfront, passing several taverns, all dilapidated and miserable on the outside, but warm  and inviting inside. It was a typical feature of the Hamrock Isles, from the ancient crumbling castles and towers that dotted the landscape, to the lowest farmer's house. It was worn down, like the people here, but inside everyone, they were bonded by a deep sense of community. On the way to the tavern mentioned earlier

The path they took was surprising, to one who had expected to go to a normal tavern, one closer to the castle. They reached the outskirts of the city, where the cobble path turned to muddy dirt in some places, and a track led to a long, squat, wooden building on the cliff overlooking the city, one with two old oak trees on either side. A chimney made of stone stood precariously above a slanted wooden roof, which sloughed off the rainwater easily, as it was in good repair. A thick door stood between two windows, each with a crossbar that divided the glass pane into quarters, and the gutter caught the water before it fell in the doorway, directing it into a rain barrel to the left of the oak door. A sign hung to the right of the door, which had the words 'The Cliffside' proudly emblazoned in green letters across the wood. 

As they walked up, the sounds of raucous carousing and the smell of ale wafted through the crack below the door. When Selena grabbed the door's handle, she paused for a moment, taking a deep breath, and closed her eyes. This... would be hard. Opening the tavern door with a loud click, she stepped into the room, eyes adjusting to the warm lantern light and smoky haze of the Night Hunter's tavern. As she walked into the tavern, everyone around the door turned and looked at her, and smiling, they all raised their mugs and cheered. [b]"Hey, everyone! Selena's here!" "What'd you bring us here for, Boss Lady?" "Yeah, why'd you tell us to come here?" [/b] Selena smiled, despite the heavy news that she brought, the cheer of her Hunters infectious. 

[color=ForestGreen][b]"Now, now, if I told you know, it wouldn't be a surprise, now would it?"[/b][/color] The men who asked her the questions laughed, and raising their flagons once more, in a salute, they turned back to their drinks. As Selena, Marko, and Wolong began to make their way to a table in the center of the room, that had most of the higher-ranking officers sitting at it, they were interrupted by a bearded old man, whose eyes glimmered beneath all of the wrinkled folds of his ancient face. It was Maximus 'Smudge' Selfidge, the crotchety old Hunter that was in charge of training all of the new recruits. He stood up, and pulled Selena into a bear hug, strength of the grip belying his old frame. [b]"Selena, m'girl! You get prettier every day!"[/b] Selena smiled and released Max, saying, [b][color=ForestGreen]"And you get more and more wrinkled every day, Maxi!"[/color][/b] Maximus let out a barking laugh, and said, [b]"I suppose that's true, isn't it? By the way, are you here about... you know what?"[/b] Selena's face became grave, and she simply nodded. Max ran his hand through his ragged grey hair, and sighed. [b]"Dear Oromis, if it's got you looking like that, then... well, it can't be good." [/b] Max sat down at the officer's table, waiting for Selena to speak. 

Selena directed Wolong and Marko to sit at the table, next to Maximus, and stepped up into the middle of it, nudging aside the flagons that remained. Calling above the good-natured din, she said, [color=ForestGreen][b]"Ay, might I have your attention, everyone! I... have some news, that you need to hear."[/b][/color] The long room fell quiet immediately, and two hundred heads turned to look at their captain. [color=ForestGreen][b]"The... force that lives in Tolos, the recruiters and propagandists... They were all slaughtered like animals."[/b][/color] Her mouth formed a hard line. This was terrible, and she was the one who had to say it. [color=ForestGreen][b]"Some of you might have known Romas, Attie, and David, but for those of you that don't, they are all dead. The thirty men that they were working with, over there, were also killed. Only one survived, and he is incapacitated. He lost both arms and legs. We will avenge our fallen brothers and sisters."[/b][/color] Selena stepped off of the table, and sat down at the officer's table, to the shocked stares of her Hunters. Almost immediately afterward, there was a commotion as everyone clambered to get to Selena, asking questions. Selena simply sat there, hood covering her face in shadow, fists clenched. It was painful for her to hear, the sounds of a confused group of men and women, wanting to know how, and more importantly, [i]why[/i] their friends were killed.